Seeking Guide for 2 Photographers

**spiral-eye** · February-18-10, 03:03 PM

To whom it may concern...

A friend and I are interested in visiting Detroit in late April for 4-7 days to photograph the ruins of Detroit. Neither of us have ever been to your City. We are looking to photograph both exteriors and interiors and are seeking a knowledgeable guide that can drive us to various locations, organize access and provide additional eyes for security while we concentrate on getting the images we are after. Payment is negotiable on your interest in connecting with two artists and your experience with the ruins of Detroit.

My work can be seen at www.visualfood.com- I will mostly be seeking works to add to what I call the Art of Extractionism, and photographing for architectural inspiration as architecture is my main gig. To a large degree though, I will also be acting as a guide and support to my friend, Jean Francois Rauzier, who will be coming from France, and is one of Europe's rising stars in the photography world. His work can be seen at www.hyper-photo.com and consists of gigantic photoshop created collages which can be printed upwards of 40'x60' with full resolution in every square inch. If you can imagine a digital file on the order of 60 gigs, this is what this magician produces. He will be traveling with expensive camera gear and so security is of great concern.

As artists we do have a limited budget and are hoping to find someone who will also enjoy meeting us through this exchange. Lunch will be included each day and we can either pay mileage and gas in your vehicle or rent a car for the purpose. Please respond with a summary of your experience and what rates you would charge [[daily or per hour), or contact info where we can discuss further in private.

Sincerely looking forward to our visit to your City...

regards

Nils Hammerbeck

**Savoyard** · February-18-10, 04:00 PM

Well ... This must be my day to be the crabby curmudgeon, and I'm not trying to be rude, but artists coming from far away to photograph the "ruins of Detroit" is getting a bit old. You're on a site that's dedicated to the "ruins of Detroit" and much more. Your website [[visualfood.com) has problems and I couldn't access it. The other site [[hyper-photo.com) is interesting, though of course it's all French to me. But is there some shortage of ruins in France that your friend needs to fly over here and photograph ours? Understand we have plenty of ruins. More than enough to share. But to the average person, French ruins look pretty much like Detroit ruins. What's the diff. Anyway, good luck with this and feel free to take some of our ruins back to the old country, assuming you're having some shortage. Believe me, we can always get more.

**Jimaz** · February-18-10, 04:52 PM

It's http://www.visualfood.com.

**Blueidone** · February-18-10, 05:58 PM

To me, there are so many jewels in the City that are now classed as "ruins", and it's great to have photographers such as these memorialize them. If I were younger, stronger and wiser about the buildings, I would be happy to guide them around. I'm sure there are DYes'ers who will be able to do this and I hope they will volunteer.

By the way...the pictures on the websites are very nice. I'm sure you both will do our City proud. I hope that you will be guided to come by the Georgia Street Community and see how we are trying to "raise the ruins" into something useful! Go to www.georgiastreetcc.com for more information.

Have a great time here!

**Django** · February-19-10, 02:07 AM

I left a message on your website visualfood.com

Im also sending you a private message on this site.

**sumas** · February-19-10, 08:30 AM

I think I am on the same page with Savoy. Come here for the life and vitality that exist, not our ruins.

Obviously, I am pro Detroit. I do bemoan a lack of preservation. We have a great history and should build on that. People coming to film or photograph the decline are not welcome in my book. People wanting to preserve what we still have and help us rebuild for a new future are.

**Meddle** · February-19-10, 10:11 AM

I'd say there's been enough of this kind of thing. If you're looking to shoot ruins, try Bagdad.

**kryptonite** · February-19-10, 12:18 PM

Originally Posted by sumas

I think I am on the same page with Savoy. Come here for the life and vitality that exist, not our ruins.

Obviously, I am pro Detroit. I do bemoan a lack of preservation. We have a great history and should build on that. People coming to film or photograph the decline are not welcome in my book. People wanting to preserve what we still have and help us rebuild for a new future are.

Amen. How many of these types of requests have been posted on Detroityes? Quite a few if memory serves me here - it is tiresome. And the photo journals are invariably negative and depressing. There definitely is more to Detroit than just decaying industrial and residential ruins although I will be the first to admit that urban decay is profound in Detroit.

**gnome** · February-19-10, 12:19 PM

spiral-eye, welcome to the forum. I can tell you that Django is very knowledgeable about our ruins and will be able show you a number of rarely photographed sites.

I suggest that you rent a van to drive around the city. You will have better access to your gear.

**Django** · February-19-10, 01:34 PM

I've never seen the decay as a negative, just reality. I think its a kind of beauty. I find it interesting how nature can take over. If anything its a lesson. I never get tired of roaming through the ruins, and over the years documenting it all.

In fact, its such a nice day I think Ill go see how the Packards crumbling.

Thanks G.